Recent years have witnessed active use of natural energy, such as wind power generation and solar photovoltaic power generation, for the purpose of solving energy-related problems.
Recent years have also witnessed growing potential of widespread use of an electric automobile, an electric two-wheeled vehicle and the like for the purpose of solving environment-related problems.
The above purposes have led to a gradually increasing practical application of an attempt to mount a solar photovoltaic power generation panel on an electric automobile so that energy generated by the solar photovoltaic power generation panel is used by the electric automobile.
FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a system configuration of a conventional air-conditioning device 10 for a vehicle, and corresponds to FIG. 1 of Patent Literature 1. The air-conditioning device 10 of FIG. 13 for a vehicle includes: a first battery 14 (solar battery); a second battery 16; a compressor 22 for cooling air inside a vehicle room; an electric heater 24 for heating the air inside the vehicle room; and a blower motor 20 for replacing the air inside the vehicle room with air outside the vehicle room.
The above air-conditioning device, in the case where the first battery 14 has a sufficient amount of remaining electric power, carries out air-conditioning control with use of the compressor 22 or electric heater 24 on the electric power of the first battery 14.
On the other hand, in the case where the first battery 14 does not have a sufficient amount of remaining electric power, the above air-conditioning device carries out air-blowing control with use of the blower motor 20 on the electric power of the first battery 14 if (i) the outside air has a temperature that is closer to a target temperature than is the temperature of the inside air or (ii) the target temperature is between the temperature of the outside air and that of the inside air.
If the outside air has a temperature that is not closer to the target temperature than is the temperature of the inside air, the above air-conditioning device carries out air-conditioning control with use of the compressor 22 or electric heater 24 on electric power of the second battery 16.